AEMO draft 2020 integrated system plan puts SA-NSW interconnector as high priority
As coal-fired power plants in NSW retire, SA’s renewable energy will become a bigger part of the national grid – so the interconnector between states has been listed as a top priority.
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- SA power bills expected to be cut as interconnector comes online
- SA solar power provides more than half of demand
The $1.5bn interconnector between South Australia and NSW has been named as a crucial part of the national plan to keep the lights on as 63 per cent of coal-fired power stations close down.
With Australia needing to spend more on the electricity grid than it will on building submarines or the NBN, the plan by the Australian Energy Market Operator will become central to an orderly transition from mid-2020.
And there will be no stalling consumers installing rooftop solar, with numbers expected to double or treble.
AEMO has been working on a plan, published today, which “maximises benefits and avoids unnecessary costs for Australian consumers”, managing director Audrey Zibelman said.
“As traditional generators retire, Australia must invest in a modern energy system,” she said.
This would include rooftop solar providing up to 22 per cent of energy, billions of dollars of investment in renewable energy plus storage and upgrades to the transmission network.
Under the plan – which will formally fast-track investment approvals – the NSW interconnector proposed by ElectraNet and NSW company TransGrid is listed as a top priority.
As well as immediately opening up new supply from NSW to SA, it would facilitate wind and solar projects in the Mid North and Murraylands which could export to NSW as that state’s coal plants close.
AEMO’s emphasis on the interconnector comes as the South Australian Government allocates $60 million to TransGrid in the Mid-Year Budget Review
“To keep the project moving forward in a timely manner, the State Government is supporting both ElectraNet and TransGrid undertake early works prior to final approval,” Energy and Mining Minister Dan van Holst Pellekaan said.
“The SA-NSW interconnector will deliver an average $66 savings for households, savings of thousands of dollars for many small businesses and a local jobs boom along its proposed route.”
However, Opposition energy spokesman Tom Koutsantonis questioned why SA taxpayers were supporting a NSW company.
“No tender, no public access to the contract, no independent verification of the scope and necessity of the works calls into question the judgment of the government,” he said.
Following SA consumers being told earlier this week cuts to power bills would be small because of transmission costs “$60 million has been gifted without explanation or a detailed breakdown of the works and the benefits for South Australians”, he said.
AEMO’s draft 2020 Integrated System Plan, which builds on its work in 2018, sets out various pathways, depending on the pace of transition.
“The high probability of shifts in future technologies, behaviours, and business models, not to mention the complexity of the system itself, means that a single predetermined path is not sufficient or robust,” it says.
“Australia’s energy sector faces a profound, complex and accelerating transition.
“To ensure a gradual, orderly transition, there must be sufficient new generation in place before each major plant exits.
“If decisions are delayed or aborted, domestic and industrial consumers will face increased costs and risks.”
AEMO is inviting comment on its draft plan until late February, with a target of producing a final plan by mid-year.